I discovered this recipe for creamy lemon chicken from Tasty. I wasn’t sure exactly how cream and lemon would go together – in my mind they weren’t a natural pairing but we tried it anyway and it has now become a family favourite. Not everything new I try goes down well with the kids but this one has. Hannah even eats the spinach in it so I only have to pick it out of one plate!

Hannah has wanted to cook dinner a lot recently, so this is how we made this one together. There are enough steps for a little one to help with, especially if they are old enough for you to trust stirring things on the hob. If you want to see a video of the original recipe take a look here.

Method

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.

Cook the chicken

Cut the chicken into small pieces and fry over a medium heat. Once it’s browned on all sides, set aside. I don’t let the kids touch raw chicken but Hannah was able to help stir the chicken to make sure it was cooked on all sides.

When I’m cooking dinner with the kids I like to prepare everything before I start cooking rather than as I go along like I do when I’m cooking on my own. I want to make sure that once the heat has been turned on I can give all my attention to that and making sure no fingers get buned etc.

Chop the onion and garlic

Your kids can probable help you to peel the onion and garlic. I then chopped the onion while H got the garlic crusher and garlic ready.

Zest and juice the lemon

Pop the lemon in the microwave for 10-15 seconds – this will help you get a lot more juice out of it. Using the small side of a grater, get your child to help grate the zest off the lemon – making sure little fingers don’t get hurt. Cut the lemon in half then squeeze all the juice out into a small bowl.

Cook the onion & garlic

Wipe the pan the chicken was in with a paper towel and add a tablespoon of butter. Fry the onion and garlic for a few minutes until they have softened. Your child can stir them in the pan if you like.

Add the lemon

Add the lemon zest and juice and stir everything together. Add a tsp of thyme. As you don’t need to worry about being too accurate this is a good step for your child to help with.

Add the liquids

Pour in the water (50ml) and double cream (120ml). Again, let your little one give everything a stir.

Add the spinach – again, don’t worry about being too accurate and weighing it. Most packs come in 100g so use it all or just keep a little back if that seems too much for you. Leave the spinach in the pan to wilt for a minute or so.

Add the cooked chicken back in along with the cooked pasta and parmesan. Give everything one final stir to coat the pasta and chicken in the sauce.